Her rage against "abusive theology" is palpable: I can abide differences when it comes to theology related to gender, the atonement, biblical interpretation, science, evolution, predestination and free will. Let’s debate those issues vigorously, but with grace and truth and love. But I cannot abide this theology that turns God into an abuser. I cannot abide this …
The Victorians Were Really Smarter After All
I was pleasantly surprised to read in phys.org that some researchers are coming to the conclusion that Victorian era people were more intelligent than those of us who have come after. With all the self-congratulating blather about the Flynn curve and just reflexive over-confidence, a corrective is in order. (It's probably too much to ask …
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Is the Left Finishing the Job? The Moment of Truth Has Come
At the end of this post I am reposting a June 2005 piece entitled "Finishing the Job:A Watergate Reflection". My central thesis at the time--a contrarian one then and now re Watergate--was that Nixon's scandals were payback for his attacks on the left during the anti-communist 1950's, and that the left, with the golden opportunity …
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The Old Prohibition Against Movies Makes a Comeback
Just about anyone raised in a Pentecostal or Holiness church in the last century will recall the prohibition of going to movies. The traditional argument against this was that, if one went to the movies and paid the admission price one was supporting the sinful Hollywood people and companies who made them. That argument just …
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Going Around and Coming Around on Paedophilia
George Conger defends the relevance of 1960's paedophilia advocate Daniel Cohn-Bendit in a religion blog: What makes this a Get Religion story is the context of the European press environment. I am not defending or excusing the Catholic Church. I am however pointing out inconsistencies and double standards in media coverage. The attack, of course, …
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IRS Investigations Politically Motivated? Better Than I Expected!
One of the strangest responses I ever got to an "ordinary" question took place in Target one night, where my wife and I ran into the daughter of a friend who is an official in our church. She was with her new husband; like us she had taken a long time to marry. So we …
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Advice to Graduates: Every Wing has a Leading Edge and a Trailing Edge
One of the diciest spectacles we have in education these days is the rush to apply technology to the process. Our school systems are spending enormous amounts of money to equip students with the latest gadget (these days, it's a tablet) and make sure they know how to run these things. Textbook publishers are rushing …
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They're Still Called Illegal Immigrants in Palm Beach
And they don't stand much of a chance, either: Palm Beach police picked up five illegal immigrants shortly after 5 a.m. Thursday at the corner of Hammon Avenue and South Ocean Boulevard, police spokesman Fred Hess said. Evidently the politically correct terminology has not quite penetrated this enclave. I think it should be noted, however, …
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Determining the Characteristic Polynomial of the Companion Matrix by Use of a Large Matrix
Most proofs of the characteristic polynomial of the companion matrix--an important specific case--proceed by induction, and start with a $latex 2\times2$ matrix. It strikes me that an inductive proof has more force (or at least makes more sense) if a larger matrix is used. In this case we will use a "large" (numerical analysts will …
Advice to Graduates: The Importance of an Objective
It's that time of the year again, when some students turn into wage-earners, others just move on to another curriculum, and still others just tank. Once the mediaeval outfits return to the closet while some who just came out of the closet try to push others they don't like into the closet, college faculty are …
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Positive Infinity 